PHP(1) Scripting Language PHP(1)
NAME
php - PHP Command Line Interface 'CLI'
SYNOPSISphp [options] [ -f ] file [[--] args...]
php [options] -rcode [[--] args...]
php [options] [-B code] -Rcode [-E code] [[--] args...]
php [options] [-B code] -Ffile [-E code] [[--] args...]
php [options] -- [ args...]
php [options] -aphp [options] -S addr:port [-t docroot]
DESCRIPTIONPHP is a widely-used general-purpose scripting language that is especially suited for Web development
and can be embedded into HTML. This is the command line interface that enables you to do the follow-ing: following:
ing:
You can parse and execute files by using parameter -f followed by the name of the file to be exe-cuted. executed.
cuted.
Using parameter -r you can directly execute PHP code simply as you would do inside a .php file when
using the eval() function.
It is also possible to process the standard input line by line using either the parameter -R or -F.
In this mode each separate input line causes the code specified by -R or the file specified by -F to
be executed. You can access the input line by $argn. While processing the input lines $argi contains
the number of the actual line being processed. Further more the parameters -B and -E can be used to
execute code (see -r) before and after all input lines have been processed respectively. Notice that
the input is read from STDIN and therefore reading from STDIN explicitly changes the next input line
or skips input lines.
PHP also contains an embedded web server for application development purpose. By using the -S option
where addr:port point to a local address and port PHP will listen to HTTP requests on that address
and port and serve files from the current working directory or the docroot passed by the -t option.
If none of -r -f -B -R -F -E or -S is present but a single parameter is given then this parameter is
taken as the filename to parse and execute (same as with -f). If no parameter is present then the
standard input is read and executed.
OPTIONS--interactive-a Run PHP interactively. This lets you enter snippets of PHP code that directly get exe-cuted. executed.
cuted. When readline support is enabled you can edit the lines and also have history
support.
--bindpathaddress:port|port-baddress:port|port
Bind Path for external FASTCGI Server mode (CGI only).
--no-chdir-C Do not chdir to the script's directory (CGI only).
--no-header-q Quiet-mode. Suppress HTTP header output (CGI only).
--timingcount-Tcount Measure execution time of script repeated count times (CGI only).
--php-inipath|file-cpath|file Look for php.ini file in the directory path or use the specified file--no-php-ini-n No php.ini file will be used
--definefoo[=bar]-dfoo[=bar] Define INI entry foo with value bar-e Generate extended information for debugger/profiler
--filefile-ffile Parse and execute file--globalname-gname Make variable name global in script.
--help-h This help
--hide-args-H Hide script name (file) and parameters (args...) from external tools. For example you
may want to use this when a php script is started as a daemon and the command line
contains sensitive data such as passwords.
--info-i PHP information and configuration
--syntax-check-l Syntax check only (lint)
--modules-m Show compiled in modules
--runcode-rcode Run PHP code without using script tags '<?..?>'--process-begincode-Bcode Run PHP code before processing input lines
--process-codecode-Rcode Run PHP code for every input line
--process-filefile-Ffile Parse and execute file for every input line
--process-endcode-Ecode Run PHP code after processing all input lines
--syntax-highlight-s Output HTML syntax highlighted source
--serveraddr:port-Saddr:port Start embedded Webserver on the given local address and port
--docrootdocroot-tdocroot Specify the document root to be used by the embedded web server
--version-v Version number
--stripped-w Output source with stripped comments and whitespace
--zend-extensionfile-zfile Load Zend extension fileargs... Arguments passed to script. Use '--'args when first argument starts with '-' or
script is read from stdin
--rfunctionname--rfname Shows information about function name--rclassname--rcname Shows information about class name--rextensionname--rename Shows information about extension name--rzendextensionname--rzname Shows information about Zend extension name--rextinfoname--riname Shows configuration for extension name--ini Show configuration file names
FILESphp-cli.ini The configuration file for the CLI version of PHP.
php.ini The standard configuration file will only be used when php-cli.ini cannot be found.
EXAMPLESphp-r'echo"HelloWorld\n";'
This command simply writes the text "Hello World" to standard out.
php-r'print_r(gd_info());'
This shows the configuration of your gd extension. You can use this to easily check which image
formats you can use. If you have any dynamic modules you may want to use the same ini file that
php uses when executed from your webserver. There are more extensions which have such a func-tion. function.
tion. For dba use:
php-r'print_r(dba_handlers(1));'php-R'echostrip_tags($argn)."\n";'
This PHP command strips off the HTML tags line by line and outputs the result. To see how it
works you can first look at the following PHP command 'php-dhtml_errors=1-i' which uses PHP
to output HTML formatted configuration information. If you then combine those two 'php...|php...' you'll see what happens.
php-E'echo"Lines:$argi\n";'
Using this PHP command you can count the lines being input.
php-R'@$l+=count(file($argn));'-E'echo"Lines:$l\n";'
In this example PHP expects each input line being a file. It counts all lines of the files spec-ified specified
ified by each input line and shows the summarized result. You may combine this with tools like
find and change the php scriptlet.
php-R'echo"$argn\n";fgets(STDIN);'
Since you have access to STDIN from within -B -R -F and -E you can skip certain input lines with
your code. But note that in such cases $argi only counts the lines being processed by php
itself. Having read this you will guess what the above program does: skipping every second input
line.
TIPS
You can use a shebang line to automatically invoke php from scripts. Only the CLI version of PHP will
ignore such a first line as shown below:
#!/bin/php
<?php
// your script
?>
SEEALSO
For a more or less complete description of PHP look here:
http://www.php.net/manual/BUGS
You can view the list of known bugs or report any new bug you found at:
http://bugs.php.netAUTHORS
The PHP Group: Thies C. Arntzen, Stig Bakken, Andi Gutmans, Rasmus Lerdorf, Sam Ruby, Sascha Schu-mann, Schumann,
mann, Zeev Suraski, Jim Winstead, Andrei Zmievski.
Additional work for the CLI sapi was done by Edin Kadribasic, Marcus Boerger and Johannes Schlueter.
A List of active developers can be found here:
http://www.php.net/credits.php
And last but not least PHP was developed with the help of a huge amount of contributors all around
the world.
VERSIONINFORMATION
This manpage describes php, version 5.4.17.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright (C) 1997-2013 The PHP Group
This source file is subject to version 3.01 of the PHP license, that is bundled with this package in
the file LICENSE, and is available through the world-wide-web at the following url:
http://www.php.net/license/3_01.txt
If you did not receive a copy of the PHP license and are unable to obtain it through the world-wide-web, world-wideweb,
web, please send a note to license@php.net so we can mail you a copy immediately.
The PHP Group 2013 PHP(1)

Reporting Problems

The way to report a problem with this manual page depends on the type of problem:

Content errors

Report errors in the content of this documentation with the feedback links below.

Bug reports

Report bugs in the functionality of the described tool or API through Bug Reporter.

Formatting problems

Report formatting mistakes in the online version of these pages with the feedback links below.